Bryan Cranston Says We Should Be Open To Giving Weinstein And Spacey A “Second Chance”

“We shouldn’t close it off and say, ‘To hell with him’.”

Nov 15, 2017 1:49am

By Katie Stow

For the most part, the world has condemned the likes of Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey in unison—joining forces to disown the men accused of awful acts against innocent women and young men, showing that social justice can be served against the richest of white men in Hollywood.

However, there has been a rare declaration of sympathy for Weinstein and Spacey by one unsuspecting actor: Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston. He has come forward to suggest that there may be space for these two men in the industry, even after their sexual harassment scandals.

Cranston spoke to the BBC to say that Kevin Spacey is a “phenomenal actor, but not a very good person”, but that he is someone who could wiggle his way back in to the entertainment industry eventually.

“It would take time, it would take a society to forgive them, and it would take tremendous contrition on their part. If they were to show us that they put the work in and were truly sorry and making amends and not defending their actions but asking for forgiveness then maybe down the road there is room for that. Maybe so. Then it would be up to us to determine, case by case, whether or not this person deserves a second chance. And I think in the face of it, we should let that open. We shouldn’t close it off and say, ‘To hell with him, rot, and go away from us for the rest of your life.’ Let’s not do that. Let’s be bigger than that. Let’s leave it open for the few who can make it through that gauntlet of trouble and who have reclaimed their life and their dignity and their respect for others. Maybe it’s possible.”

Though it’s sweet that Cranston is encouraging forgiveness in the general sense, it seems quite insensitive to be suggesting that society welcome back Spacey and Weinstein, as it is speaking on behalf of their victims and implying that they, too, should forgive the men who assaulted them.

Speaking of the victims, it is also crass to define forgiving these men as giving them a “second chance,” as with Spacey’s case there are 15 allegations against him, and there are 90 women (and counting) who have accused Weinstein of sexually assaulting them—including multiple rapes—so this wouldn’t be a “second chance”. It would, at the very least, be their 105th chance.